February 18, 2010
Royston, Herts, UK — Asterand plc (LSE: ATD), a leading provider of human tissue and human tissue-based services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies engaged in drug discovery research, announced it has completed its acquisition of BioSeek, Inc. (BioSeek), a pioneer in the application of predictive human biology to drug discovery through its unique human primary cell based disease models (the Acquisition). The Acquisition was finalised after the approval by Asterands shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting held today, where all resolutions put to shareholders were duly passed. BioSeek LLC is now a new entity and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asterand plc.
Application has been made for the 2,695,856 ordinary shares of Asterand (Ordinary Shares) issued by the Company in satisfaction of the initial consideration of the Acquisition to be admitted to the main market of the London Stock Exchange and trading in the Ordinary Shares is expected to commence on 23 February 2010.
Martyn Coombs, Chief Executive Officer of Asterand commented:
“It is exactly three months since we first announced this deal and we cant wait to offer a new, broader line of products and services to our customers based on the BioSeek technology, which is so complimentary to Asterand. This acquisition is about growth and supplying real value-added services to our drug discovery clients. The BioSeek and Asterand teams look forward to working closely together to expand and grow the combined business.”
About Asterand
Asterand plc is a leading supplier of high quality human tissue and tissue-based services. Our comprehensive approach to human tissue and research services offers pharmaceutical, biotech and diagnostic companies the unique opportunity to have one Company meet all of their human biomaterial needs along the continuum of drug discovery and development. Our mission is to accelerate target discovery and compound validation and enable pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to take safer and more effective drugs into the market. For more information, go to www.asterand.com.
About BioSeek
BioSeek is improving the success rate of pharmaceutical research and development by integrating human biology from the earliest stages of drug discovery onward. The companys BioMAP® Systems incorporate predictive primary human cell-based disease models that generate uniquely informative activity profiles of each potential drug, assisting in the selection and development of new drug candidates. BioSeek is leveraging BioMAP® Systems technology in collaborations to enhance the productivity of its pharmaceutical partners pipelines.For more information, go to www.bioseekinc.com.